Estia

The Greek food obsession is SO real when it comes to my date nights. My boyfriend and I love our Greek food, and although we don't like to stray from our favourite (Taverna Greek Psistaria) we don't mind trying out new places either. I'd heard about Estia from one of the girls at work so we decided to give it a go. We usually like ordering a salad and a mix of grilled meats at Greek restaurants which we always end up comparing to our favourite. At Estia, they recommend sharing smaller dishes called mezedakia, so we ordered a few which were served on lemon pilaf with a salad.

Elliniki $9.50 

A solid Greek salad, though neither one of us were very keen on the spring onions.

Keftedes $11

Meat balls spiced with garden mint, spring onion and garlic, served with tzatziki

Tis skaras arnaki $12.90

Lamb fillet marinated in olive oil, lemon and selected spices, chargrilled

Calamari tiganito $13.50

Local calamari lightly floured and fried

My favourite of the three was the grilled lamb which I thought was cooked and seasoned perfectly. The rest of the food was okay but nothing special. I must say, our favourite Greek still remains at Taverna. If anyone has any recommendations for good Greek food, please let me know! I've also tried out Kefi which is also fantastic but I prefer Taverna because it's not even 10 minutes away from home.

Sah Modern Mediterranean [2]

My boyfriend and I were after a light dinner one night and decided to try out Sah for some tapas and paella. We often drive past on our way home and I have visited previously (see here) but hadn't thought to return. Now for the fussiest eater I know to want to try out a restaurant I hadn't suggested, I thought, why not? 

Chicken and parmesan croquettes $3.50 ea

Very cheesy, but probably a little small for its size. 

Greek style chicken marinated in garlic, lemon and oregano $13

We love Greek food, and this hit the spot!
Ps. for top notch Greek food, our favourite restaurant is Taverna Greek Psistaria. I haven't written up a blog post on it yet because I order take away from there allll the time, but do expect one in the future when we go back to dine in!

Chargrilled Moroccan spiced lamb cutlets with cumin yoghurt $14

Good flavours but again, nothing too special. 

Paella mixta for 1 $29

Locally sourced chorizo, chicken, prawns & calamari

My boyfriend was excited to try this because he'd never had paella before. We were expecting something incredible for a paella which placed 4th best in the world. The rice was cooked beautifully, as well as the chorizo, chicken, prawns and calamari. It was quite salty though and definitely needed a drizzle of lemon juice over the top to freshen it up. The only thing it was missing was the characteristic layer of crispy rice. 

Not bad for a light dinner, but probably a bit pricey for what we had. There was nothing too memorable here although we still enjoyed our paella. I wouldn't mind returning but again, it's not something that will ever top my list of places to re-visit.

Papparich

My family has been a little obsessed with Papparich lately. I think it must be the extensive and affordable menu as well as the efficient service, which is what my parents tend to look for in a restaurant for a larger group. It's been a restaurant we fall back on whenever none of us can decide on what to eat. Despite the long lines, we've never had to wait too long for a table. Here's a taste of what we've ordered on two of our past visits, which has caused us to leave absolutely stuffed to the brim! 

Teh Tarik

White coffee with coffee jelly

Teh Tarik with coffee jelly

Pappa special biryani rice with sambal eggplant, fried chicken & sambal prawns

Roti telur with curry chicken

My absolute favourite!

Oriental chicken chop

Egg noodles

We've also tried the laksa and satay skewers, which were both great, as well as the fried chicken skin which I personally did not like at all. I'd recommend it for people who aren't afraid to try new things and are looking for affordable lunch and dinner options. I am not at all an expert on Malaysian cuisine although I did get a taste of it on a trip to Kuala Lumpur a few years ago. Regardless of that, I'd say it's a pretty good feed especially if you go in a large group and can try a bit of everything!

Caffe Papparazzi

A shockingly hot day brought the gang to Caffe Papparazzi before a trip down to the beach. We had been eyeing this place since it started popping up on social media with the launch of a new clean eating menu. The menus are all very extensive and we had a hard time deciding on what to order!

Wake me up before you gogo green smoothie $8.50

Cucumber, kale, kiwi fruit, pineapple, coconut water

This tasted really... healthy. I really couldn't taste any of the fruit and was rather overwhelmed by all the greens. It's a good thing I do enjoy a green juice once in a while, but the girls thought this tasted like grass, so avoid this one if you think you'd share their sentiments!

Healthy banana smoothie $8.50

Banana, almond milk, raw honey, chia seeds, maca powder, cinnamon

I heard nothing but praise for this one.  Also, the little glass milk bottles are a cute (but only very slight) deviation away from the typical mason jar presentation.

Big not so pretty eggy brekky $16

Eggs, vegetables (kale, zucchini, mushrooms, asparagus, char grilled capsicum, sweet potato), garlic, chilli, chicken

Two of us ordered this for breakfast and both agreed it was on the bland side. I definitely couldn't  taste any chilli and the chicken was also quite dry. The bread it was served with was very dense but overall this was a very filling meal! Maybe a bit of pesto to liven it up?

Eggs florentine $15

with spinach, tomato & hollandaise sauce served on English muffins

This wasn't the best Hollandaise but the eggs and spinach were well cooked. The tomato was a nice addition to break up the rest of the flavours on the dish. This was probably the most flavoursome dish of all the ones we ordered.

Paparazzi clean eating salad $15

Grilled chicken, bacon, oven-dried tomatoes, sweet potato, continental cucumber, lettuce

Warm chicken salad $15

Grilled chicken, avocado, roasted capsicum, activated cashews, lettuce

Both girls ordered the mustard, olive oil and lemon juice dressing along with their salads and still found it very bland overall. This would be something to order if you're feeling peckish and want a light lunch, but don't expect it to be flavoursome. 

Those caaaakes!

Peppermint slice $3.50

Buckwheat flour, raw cacao, pecans, coconut oil, cashews, maple syrup, coconut, peppermint essential oil

YUM! Super crumbly but a nice take on the classic peppermint slice. This one was enjoyed by everyone.

Lime and kiwi cashew cheesecake $7.50

Almonds, macadamias, coconut, sulphate free dried fruit, coconut oil, cashews, kiwi, spinach, lime, coconut cream, arrowroot

I'm always excited by "cleaner" versions of desserts, particularly raw cakes. This was a little underwhelming, I thought it needed a bit more 'zing' from the lime, perhaps extra lime juice and zest somewhere in the mix. There was also too much coconut and that was all I could taste in the first few bites. 

Caffe Papparazzi is a lovely little spot for breakfast or lunch with great service but unfortunately nothing about the menu really excited us. I can't see any of us rushing back any time soon, although some of the lunch and dinner options on the clean eating menu do sound great, particularly the 'I can't believe it's not butter chicken'!

 

Mister Sunshine's

Wanting to try somewhere new for brunch outside the CBD, my friend and I headed over to Mister Sunshine's in Thebarton after trawling through Instagram on the hunt for something different. Parking was an absolute pain, but we managed to find a park a few streets away. Making our way over, we noticed there was outdoor seating but it was far too cold that day, so we sat inside amidst the mismatched chairs and tables. It was absolutely packed that day, with people dining in as well as people popping in for takeaway coffee and lunch. 

Hot Choc Coconut $4.50

Warm, creamy and comforting. Perfect on a cold day!

French toast $13

Served with plum compote, vanilla labne and pistaccio

Looks delightful but unfortunately I found it very unsatisfying. The french toast itself was quite bland and all I could taste was the egg. A bit of sugar or vanilla would have improved it. The plum compote was the most flavourful thing on the plate, with the plums not too soft and having just the right amount of sweetness. The sauce which I assume came from the compote didn't have a distinct taste, if anything it tasted a little burnt. A promising dish but note quite what I was expecting. 

Smashed pumpkin with poached eggs $17

On toasted rye with feta, toasted seeds, rocket and almond and almonds

No complaints from J over this dish! It looked great (100% instagrammable) and she really enjoyed it.

Although my french toast was a bit of a let down, everything else was fantastic and I wouldn't hesitate to return for more of the menu, as well as the delicious-looking bakery items by the counter! The service was absolutely lovely and the atmosphere was also great, definitely a great location for a casual meal or catch up over coffee.

 

Republic

University has scattered my group of high school friends far and wide, so it's quite rare to have the majority of us simultaneously back in little old Adelaide! Clearly this required a little reunion, which we organised for a lunch at Republic.

Wedges $8

 Republic Southern fried chicken $22

Spiced Semolina Crusted Squid $21

 Battered Barramundi $24

 Top, Lamb Wrap $18

All the food was quite standard, although the serving sizes were great, considering we also had a 25% discount having dined in on a week day (all prices listed are the prices on the menu). Special mention to that Southern fried chicken which had some beautiful spices in the batter. Service was rather unfriendly and cold, even though there was only one other table there at the time. Smiling doesn't hurt!

 

Mr Bulgogi

My friends and I have developed a slight obsession with Korea lately and when we heard of a new Korean restaurant located less than 10 minutes away from one of our homes, we just had to book ourselves for dinner! We were most looking forward to the fried chicken which we had seen photos of all over social media.

Soy chicken bibimbap $15.50

We initially wanted to order the bulgogi bibimbap but were informed that they had run out. I didn't find anything special about this bibimbap and probably won't order this particular one again. The soy chicken was quite bland and we regretted not ordering the spicy pork bibimbap!

Korean fried chicken half & half $32

Original style deep fried chicken

Soy sauce seasoned fried chicken

The batter was thin, light and crisy. The original style was lightly seasoned while a thin glaze-like soy sauce was drizzled over the top of the second flavour. The original style could have been improved with a bit more flavour as we found it a little bland. The soy sauce seasoned chicken would have been improved by a slightly thicker sauce - the thin sauce either soaked right through and made the batter soggy or just dripped off the chicken. Also not all pieces of chicken were identifiable - some bits were wings and drumsticks but we weren't too sure what the rest were! Some pieces ended up being boneless while others were literally all bone. The pickled radish and [rather bland] coleslaw added a bit of freshness to cut through the chicken.

 Chicken Gangjeong Half & Half $32

Original style with crispy rice cakes

Sweet and Spicy Style with potato

Eating boneless fried chicken is just so satisfying. The sweet and spicy chicken was my absolute favourite that night! I loved the thick sauce, which was not too spicy. It made the deep fried tteok even better. Would definitely recommend it.

My only other critique for the evening would be service. It was ridiculously difficult to get the attention of any of the staff who weren't really keeping an eye on the floor while they were standing behind the counter. The food didn't take too long to come out, although we would have preferred for all 3 things to come out simultaneously. For the 5 of us that night, we ended up spending about $16 and were stuffed to the brim with chicken. We're not in a hurry to return but that sweet and spicy fried chicken is definitely worth trying!